The Edge of War Session 4
The fourth session in the campaign The Edge of War Preceded by The Edge of War Session 3 As the adventurers are making their way towards Iarthair-dun they see smoke on the horizon. Arriving closer to the city, they surmise that it has been seiged, although no army is visible. Cautiously heading towards the gate, the adventurers see no one inside the city, although they can hear a crowd murmuring in the distance. When they arrive at the source of the noise, they see a large crowd of mostly dwarves in the city's central square, with dozens of hobgoblins guarding them. Banners with the symbol of Bane are draped along the city walls. As the citizens are waiting to be addressed, Isaack uses ghost sound to attract a dwarf over to where the party is hiding. The dwarf explains how the city was overtaken two degrees prior, and that the hobgoblins have been searching the catacombs beneath the city for a magical battle standard. As he is speaking with the party, a hobgoblin takes the stage and introduces Vetro. Vetro commands the citizens to kneel before him, and when they resist he slits the throat of a dwarven prisoner and bathes in a shower of its blood. As he is extolling the virtues of Bane, enchanted banners are unfurled showing moving images of the hobgoblin occupation, including hobgoblins carrying the magical battle standard. Seeing this, Halzar presses their dwarf ally to bring them to the part of the city where the battle standard was seen on the screens. The dwarf then stealthily leads the party to an alchemical school he recognizes in part of the city's alchemical district. As the heroes arrive at the school, they spy a single hobgoblin in the courtyard outside with three dire wolves. Isaack changes his form to appear as an attractive female hobgoblin, seducing the guard so strongly that he leaves his post to meet Issack in an alley, where he is surprised to find the rest of the party waiting for him. Sensing their master in trouble, the dire wolves leap to the attack, but they are unable to move past Kuori and Jethro and end up squeezing on top of one another in a wolf tower. After the guard and wolves are all slain the party entered the school, finding two shackled dwarves at workbenches covered in alchemical substances. The dwarves inform the party that the keys to their shackles and the battle standard are being held in the next room by Gorbud. The adventurers guide the still-chained dwarves outside, and move one of the alchemical workbenches in front of the door in the hopes of knocking its flaming contents onto their enemies. As Kuori opens the door into the next room the party sees four hobgoblins gathered under a chandelier watching a screen with Vetro continuing his speech. Jethro then throws his spear at the rope holding up the chandelier, causing it to come crashing down upon the hobgoblins. The party then finish off their enemies, claim the battle standard, and unlock the chains holding the dwarven alchemists bound. Confused by the image on the screen, Kuori mistakenly attacks the image of Vetro, destroying the enchantment. However, just before the magical tapestry is ruined, the party sees Rook appear on stage and approach Vetro. As Halzar takes the battle standard, the party receives a psychic flash from Kepesk telling them that the next of the Heroes' Artifacts is to be found in Garban. As they are attempting to head back to the city square to incite a riot amongst the citizens, the party stumbles upon a legion of hobgoblins. The hobgoblins pursue the party throughout the city, eventually chasing them out of Iarthair-dun and across Rider's Plains. Followed by The Edge of War Session 5